Imprimatur

Imprimatur is an official approval from the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church stating that a literary or similar work is free from error in matters of doctrine and morals, and hence acceptable reading for faithful Catholics.

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It is of the greatest importance, of course, in works directly addressing Catholic theology and doctrine, and was introduced as a measure to reduce exposure, particularly of the laity, to heresy. The presence of the imprimatur was at one time a matter of the greatest concern to many Catholics. (In fact, in some officially Catholic countries, nothing could be legally published without such an imprimatur. This was a form of prior restraint.) Today it is likely of concern only to more conservative Catholics.

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A Catholic imprimatur can consist of up to three stamps, each followed by a signature (name and title):

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• Imprimi potest (Latin, meaning "able to be printed") -- If the work is that of a religious order, this stamp indicates that it has first been examined and approved by the religious superior or head of the religious order (or a duly appointed representative).
• Nihil obstat (Latin, meaning "nothing hinders") -- This stamp indicates that the work has been examined and approved by the censor of the diocese, and that he finds it free of doctrinal or moral error. The censor is often a scholarly priest appointed by the bishop, and it is his task to work back-and-forth with the author of the work to correct any inaccuracies or problems.
• Imprimatur (Latin, meaning "let it be printed") -- Finally, this stamp indicates that the work has been approved for printing by the bishop of the diocese, or other ecclesiastical authority.

These "stamps" and "signatures" are simply rendered in plain type on a page at the front of the book (i.e. they are not literal stamps and hand-written signatures), and are often followed by the date and place of signing, as on legal documents.

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Following this, some works may also include the following statement:

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• "The Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur are official declarations that a book or pamphlet is free of doctrinal or moral error. No implication is contained therein that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat and the Imprimatur agree with the content, opinions or statements expressed."

(While at first glance this statement might seem contradictory, an example might be that of a Catholic work that offered parenting advice -- the advice may not be morally wrong or contradict Catholic doctrine, but it might not be shared by the censor or bishop.)

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Imprimaturs are not automatically transferrable to later versions of a work. Any new edition also requires a new imprimatur to be obtained.

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The term has been broadened to include "official" approval by whatever authorities are pertinent to the field in question, hence a political work might be said to have the "imprimatur" of a certain politician or political party; this typically would be meant in a symbolic sense, although sometimes such works are directly endorsed in a manner similar to the medieval Church process with a replica signature of endorsement or something similar. (An example of frequent modern usage of the term outside of Catholicism is digital imprimatur.)

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